Pellet forming apparatus



' measuring slide;

Fig. is a fragmentary sectional view taken Patented July 6, 1g

UNI

2,323,785 PELLET FORMING APPARATUS" Earl E. Beeton, Elizabeth, and Hobart T. Campbell, Belleville, N. 1., assignors to Western Electrio Company, Incorporated, New York, N. Y.,

a corporation of New York Application May 31, 1941, Serial No. 396,108

2 Claims (01. 18-1) terial to an outlet 20. A' flange 21 of the base This invention relates to pellet forming apparatus, and more particularly to apparatus for forming active elements or pellets of caesium for use in photoelectric cells.

Active elements for photoelectric cells are required to be accurately measured before forming and whensuch a process is carried out by hand the average productionfor one operator is low.

An object of the'invention is to provide an apparatus which is simple in construction yet highly emcient in accurately measuring and forming pellets.

With this and other objects in view, the invention comprises a measuring element to receive a measured quantity of material from a supply and transfer the quantity of material to a die, where a punch cooperates with the die to form the material into a pellet, the punch subsequently forcportion I1 is engaged by a plurality of clamping levers 23 pivotally supported, at 24 (Fig. 3), on vertical portions 25 of the plate 14 and forced into engagement with the flange 2| at their spaced positions by springs 26, the latter being disposed concentric with the studs 21 carried by the plate. Wing nuts 28 disposed on the studs 21 maybe rotated to move the levers 23 against the force of the springs 26, to free the levers cylinder, as shown in section in Fig. 1, threadedly ing the pellet from the die and into a receptacle.

Other objects and advantages will be apparent from the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein I Fig. 1 is a front elevational view of the apparatus, portions thereofbeingshown in section;

Fig. 2 is' a top plan view of the apparatus, portions thereof being broken away;

Fig. 3 is an end elevational view of the apparatus, portions thereof being removed to illustrate other features of the apparatus;

' Fig. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary detailed view, portions thereof being shown in section to illustrate the material supplying cylinder and the .along the line 5-5 of Fig. 2; and

Fig. 6 illustrates the same structure as shown inFig. 5, with certain of the elements in different.

positions.

Attention is now directed to the drawings, particularly to Figs. 1 to 3 inclusive, which illustrate a base 10 which may be mounted upon any suitable support such as the table of a press. Upon the base ill a body member is disposed and provided with opposed apertured flanges I2 .to receive screws l3 through the aid of which the body member is rigidly mounted on the base.

On the left half of the body member H (Figs. 1 and 2) a supporting plate I4 is secured, this plate having a material supplying cylinder or container 16. mounted thereon. As will be observed by viewing Fig. 4, the cylinder l5 includes a flanged base portion 11 with a conical central aperture ll therein to receive material, for example caesium, I9 from the cylinder and direct theme.-

receives a hollow nut 36 for removably securing a cover 3| in place, the latter having a connection 32 to a supply line 33, the latter being in connection with means to supply air under a desired variable pressure to the cylinder to force the material therein toward the outlet 20.

Attention is again directed to the lower portion of the cylinder (Fig. 4) where it will be observed that a space is provided between the outlet 20 and the upper surface of the plate It for sliding movement of a material measuring and transferring member 35. This member has an aperture 36 therein, which will serve as and will hereinafter be called a measuring cup for the material l9 to receive measured quantities of the material and transfer these quantities successively to a die hereinafter described.

The member 35 has an integral arm 36 which extends to the left (Figs. 1 and 2) to a position where it is secured, as at 39, to a slide 40. The slide 40 is supported by a bracket ll which is flxed to the body member ll by any suitable means (not shown), providing guide rails 42 between which the slide is movable in a straight path towardand away fromthe outlet 20 of the cylinder l5. An adjustable stop 44 carried by the bracket II at the outer end thereof limits the outward movement of the slide to accurately locate the cup 36 in registration with the outlet 20. Movement can be imparted to the slide to move the member 35 through the aid of a hand or the core 55 and the head portion d toward and away from the cylinder l5.

forward movement of the member 35, that is to the right (Fig. 2), is controlled by an Lshaped stop (Figs. 1 and 2) having an elongate aperture in the lower portion thereof for adjustment relative to a screw M which serves to hold the stop in any desired adjusted position. The stop- 59 serves to align the measuring cup with a sizing die 62 rigidly supported in an element the latter being mounted upon the body 5!. a vibrating element 55 is electrically operable to actuate a hammer 56 against the member 35 when the latter is positioned in engagement with the stop 59 to cause the quantity of the material in the cup 36 to drop into the opening of the die 62.

A punch (68 of a size receivable in the opening of the die 62v and of a length suificient to project therethrough, is supported by a head 69, which in turn is supported by an operating portion of suitable actuating means, such as that commonly used in presses. The head 69 is guided in its vertical movement on spaced guide posts H receivable in apertures 12 of the head and supported by the element 63 and the body member I I. A centering pin cooperating with an aperture '16 in the body member ll (Figs. 2 and 4) assures alignment of the punch 68 with the aperture of the die 62.

As illustrated in Fig. 2 and shown in detail in Figs. 5 and 6, a diagonally extending groove 80 is formed in the body I I beneath the element 63 and a portion of the plate I4, to slidably receive an anvil 8|, the latter having an abutting or forming portion 82, formed of a wear resisting metal upon which a pellet 83 may be formed of the material supplied to the die 62 by the cup 36. The anvil 8| is also provided with a passageway 84 which may be moved into registration with the opening of the die 62 and with a fixed passageway 85 in the body II for the passage of the finished pellet 83 into a receptacle 86 by further downward movement of the punch 69 after the pellet has been formed.

One end of the anvil 8| is provided with a roller 88 to be engaged by a cam 89 of an actuating lever 90, the latter being pivoted at 9| and conditioned through the cam to cause movement of the anvil from the position shown in Fig. 5 to the position shown in Fig. 6 through clockwise movement of the lever (Fig. 2). The opposite end of the anvil carries a pin 93 which extends into an aperture 96- of a member 95 mounted in the groove 89 and serves as a guide for the anvil with the walls of the groove.

-The receptacle 86 is of the contour illustrated in the dotted lines in .Figs. 1 and 2 and of the cross-sectional contour as illustrated in Figs. 5 and 6, this receptacle having an open inner end for the free removal of the pellets therefrom 'while the outer end, indicated at 91, is closed and provided with a handle 98. A spring 99 disposed concentric with the pin 93 between the anvil 3i and the member 95, serves to return the anvil to the forming position shown in Fig. 5.

During the operation of the apparatus let it be assumed that the member 35 is returned to its position shown in Figs. 1 and 4, to position cup 36 adjacent the outlet 29 of the cylinder IS in. receive a quantity of the material Hi. When in this position the winding or coil 56 of the solenoid 52 will be energized to cause movement of the core 55 to cause the head 54 to strike the cylinder to loosen material i 5] from any acked condition a outlet under pres the 3 force throu this tim Oi IIlOV the 11361 is moved to the right until it engages the stop 55, at which time the cup is in alignment with the aperture of the die-52. The vibrating element is then energized, causing the hammer 56 to strike the element vibrating the element and causing the quantity of material in the cup 36 to drop into the opening of the die. The powdered material may easily be compact when forced into the cup 36 through the outlet 29 of the cylinder 15 under pressure and this compact condition will retain the quantity of material in the cup until it has been advance to the die 62. The surface of the plate M adjacent the cup 36 when in the loading po sition, serves as a temporary bottom for the cup. The compact condition of the material in the cup when reaching the unloading position adjacent the die, necessitates an agitating means, such as the hammer blows from the vibrating element 65, to loosen the material so that it will drop freely into the outlet of the die. When this has been accomplished the member 35 is returned to its normal position, after which the punch 68 is lowered into the die opening, cooperating with the die 62 and the anvil 8|, that is, the portion 92 of the anvil, to form the pellet 83. Following the forming operation, the punch may be moved upwardly a slight distance or the pressure thereon released, at which time the lever 90 may be moved clockwise, causing the cam 89 moving against the roller 88 to move the anvil 8| against the spring 99 to align the passageway 84 with the passageway and the opening in the die 62, after which further downward movement may be imparted to the punch 68, forcing the pellet 83 free of the die and allowing it to drop into the receptacle 86. This completes one cycle of operation of the apparatusexcepting the returning of the punch to its upper position and the returning of the anvil to its normal position through the counterclockwise movement of the lever and the force of the spring 99.

The operations may be repeated, loosening and forcing the material IS in the container l5, filling the cup 36 with a measured quantity of the material, transporting this measured quantity of material to the die, 'where the material is dropped into the die by the jarring of the member 35 by the hammer 66, after which the punch, aided by the die and the anvil, form the pellet, the punch later ejecting the pellet from the die and into the receptacle when the anvil is moved to clear a passageway between the die and the receptacle. Therefore, the article produced by the apparatus is a pellet accurately formed to size of a measured quantity of material. The size up the cup 36, aided by the bottom thereof, which is the adjacent surface of the plate l4 and the out 01f surface around the outlet 29, determines the quantity of material from each pellet. The size of the cup being constant, the nature of the material and the pressure of the air to the material in the tank being constant, the quantities of the material successively fed to the die will also be constant, resulting in the production of identical pellets.

Theembodiment of the invention herein dispiy line and assures movement of the materiz gh the outlet and into the cup.

ht irough counter-cloclwise movement, to the left of he lever (Fig. 2),

aaaavea closed is merely illustrative and may be widely modified and departed from in many ways without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as pointed out in and limited solely by the appended claims. 7

What isclaimed is:

l. A pellet forming apparatus comprising a vi'orming die, means to supply a measured quantity of material to the die. a reciprocable element having an anvil portion and an open portion to 2. A pellet forming apparatus comprising a forming die, means to supply a quantity of material to the die, a reciprocable element having an anvil portion and an open portion to respectlvely close and open'the die, a receptacle disposed beneath the die, a punch receivable in the die, and means to reciprocate thepimch between varied limits operable in timed relation with the reciprocation of the element to compress the material in the die into a pellet when the anvil portion is in registration with the die, to free the punch of the pellet during movement of the element toregister the openportion thereof with the die and to cause the punch to eject the pellet into the receptacle.

' EARL E. BEETON. p

HOBART T. CAMPBELL. 

